Switch for a magnetic suspension railroad

ABSTRACT

An improved switch for a magnetic suspension railroad in which in the switch area rail shaped support and guidance elements are disposed on movable supports resulting in a switch which is light in weight, has short structural length and short switching time.

United States Patent [191 nan [ Oct. 21, 1975 SWITCH FOR A MAGNETICSUSPENSION RAILROAD [75] Inventor: Hans-Jiirgen Diill,

Langensendelbach, Germany [73] Assignee: Siemens Aktiengesellschaft,Munich,

Germany [22] Filed: May 23, 1974 [21] Appl. No.: 472,683

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data Dec. 14, 1973 Germany 2362304[52] US. Cl 104/130; 104/96 [51] Int. Cl. E01B 25/06 [58] Field ofSearch 104/130, 148 LM, 148 MS, 104/148 SS, 96-105 [56] References CitedUNITED STATES PATENTS 1,903,386 4/1933 Fish 104/101 2,840,006 6/1958Henderson 104/130 3,098,454 7/1963 Maestrelli 104/130 3,828,686 8/1974Steenbeck 104/148 MS Primary ExaminerM. Henson Wood, Jr.

Assistant ExaminerD. W. Keen Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Kenyon & KenyonReilly Carr & Chapin [57] ABSTRACT 2 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures US.Patent Oct. 21, 1975 Sheet 1 of 2 3,913,492

Sheet 2 of 2 3,913,492

US. Patent Oct. 21, 1975 SWITCH FOR 'A MAGNETIC SUSPENSION RAILROADBACKGROUND OF INVENTION This invention relates to magnetic suspensionrailroads in general, and more particularly to an improved switch foruse in such railroads.

In magnetic suspension railroads, secondary conducting elements such aselectrical conducting loops, conductor plates or magnets are arranged ina rail-like shape extending along the roadbed and cooperate with primaryconducting loops in the vehicle to generate support (suspension) andguidance forces. Because these devices very often extend vertically,problems of interference are involved at switch areas. As a result,various schemes for switching from a main track onto a branch track havebeen developed. An example of one such switch is disclosed on page 19,of an AEG/BBC/Siemens publication entitled ElectrodynamicSuspension-Erlangen Test Track, Ordering No. E 41 PM/ 1329. In thisdocument, a sliding switch in which suspension and guidance elements forone travel direction along with suspension and guidance devices for theother travel direction are disposed next to each other on a traversemechanism which extends over the entire length of the switches isdisclosed. Switching is accomplished by sliding this massive switchmechanism. Clearly, such a switch is quite costly because the traversemechanism has a length of between 500 and 1500 m.

In view of this, it can be seen that there is a need for a lessexpensive and simpler switching mechanism through which switching in amagnetic suspension railroad can be carried out. In particular, such aswitching mechanism should be as small and as light weight as possible,thus making it less expensive and capable of shorter switching times.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a solution tothis problem. In the switch area, the normal secondary conductorelements on the roadbed used for suspension and guidance are providedonly at the outsides of the switch. That is, on the outside of thestraight section of the track and on the outside of the branch or curvedsection. (When referring to the outside what is meant is the outside asviewed from entry to the switch. In actuality, what is the outside whenviewed from that aspect is actually the inside rail of the curved branchtrack.) In this arrangement, the frog of the switch is mounted in astationary manner and the portion of the support and guidance elementsat the switch entry point is mounted on a transversely movable support.On the support and within the switch suspension secondary conductingelements leading to the frog are mounted inside the normal secondaryconductor element arrangement on the outside. In an alternateembodiment, the guidance devices are provided again only on the outsidesof the switch with the frog of the switch stationarily mounted and thesupport and guidance devices disposed, again only in the entryarea, ondouble-armed levers shiftable between'two positions by rection. Witheither solution, a considerable weight reduction, a substantialshortening of the structural length of the movable parts and a simplermechanism is obtained. With the arrangement wherein the suspenrotationabout shafts extending parallel to the travel dision and guidancedevices are mounted on a movable support,switching distances become veryshort.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. la is a plan view of a firstembodiment of a switch according to the present invention.

FIG. 1b is a similar view showing the same switch set for branchingoperation.

FIG. 2 is a view along the section II-II of FIG. 1a.

FIG. 3a is a plan view of an alternate embodiment of the switch of thepresent invention.

FIG. 3b is a cross-sectional view of the switch of FIG. 3a.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT FIGS. 1 and 2illustrate a first embodiment of the present invention. As illustrated,a concrete roadbed l is provided upon which are disposed rail shapedmagnetic support or suspension and guidance elements. As illustrated,these comprise conductor plates. However, as is well known in the art,these may also comprise conductor loops, magnets, and so on which ineach case extend in a rail-like manner in the direction of travel. Theelements for suspension comprise conductor plates 2 arrangedhorizontally on the roadbed 1. Guidance plates 3 are installed in avertical manner extending along the horizontal plates 2. These plates,which are also referred to as secondary conductor elements, cooperatewith current carrying superconductor coils installed in the vehicle togenerate the necessary lifting and guidance forces. Typically, thevehicle will be driven by a linear motor which may cooperate with therail 3 which then in addition to its function as a guidance rail becomesa reaction rail. Also shown are conventional rails 4 and 5 which areused for running the vehicle on wheels during a take-off or landing orin case some difficulty is encountered. Typically, vehicles of thisnature, one of which is illustrated on FIG. 3b, have retractable wheelswhich cooperate with the rails 4 and 5 for this purpose.

In accordance with the present invention, the rail shaped guidanceelements 3 are provided only on the outside of the tracks as viewed fromthe point of entry to the switch. The outsides are designated on theswitch shown on FIG. la as a and b. The outside b in actuality is theinside of the curved portion of the branch track. Inside of each of theoutside combinations comprising the suspension element 2 and guidanceelement 3 is an additional suspension element 2a or 2b, element 2a beingassociated with the straight track section a and element 2b beingassociated with the branch or curved track section b. These extend fromthe entry point to a frog 7. In addition, plural sets of conventionalrails 4 and 5 are provided for straight ahead and branching travel. Theprovision of guidance elements 3 on the outside only is maintained untilthe points past the frog 7 of the switch. With the arrangement shown,the frog 7 is stationary and only a section of the suspension andguidance elements within the switch are disposed at its entry point on atransversely movable support 6. In the illustrated embodiment, thesupport 6 is a framework mounted for sliding transversely to thedirection of travel. It can be mounted on wheels or with special slidingsurfaces on its underside and is actuated hydraulically by a piston 8between two limit stops 9 and 10, the

3 stop 9 being one for curved travel and 1 for straight ahead travel.

In the position illustrated on FIG. la, the'switch is set for straightahead travel. With the switch set in this manner, the outside guidanceelements 3b for curved travel is moved out of the way so that as thevehicle, such as a vehicle shown on FIG. 3b, enters the switch there isno interference between it and the guidance element. While traversingthe switch from the entrance at the transversely movable support 6 untilpassing the frog 7, guidance is maintained by the left guidance elements3 and 3a, and support maintained by the suspension rail 2 associatedtherewith on that side and the rail 2b on the other side.

With the support 6 moved to the other position as shown in FIG. lb, theguidance element 3b for branch travel is aligned with the branch trackguidance element 3 on the right. The transversely movable guidanceelement 3a on the left side used for straight ahead travel is now movedout of the way. Now when the vehicle enters the switch it will be guidedoff onto the branch track by the element 3b on the right side withoutinterference from the element 3a on the left side. Suspension will bemaintained by the element 2 associated with elements 3 and 3b on oneside and by the rail 2a on the other side. FIGS. 3a and 3b show analternate embodiment of the invention. In this embodiment, rather thanplacing the support and guidance element on a transversely movablemember the elements are mounted on each side on a double-armed lever.Again, the location of the switching mechanism is the same, i.e., onlyat the entry into the switch and the frog 7 remains stationary.

FIGS. 3a and 3b show the switch mechanism in a position for straightahead travel. In this position a support element and guidance element 3are in position on top of a double-armed lever 9. On the right side, the

second double-armed lever 11 is exposing the support element 2b with thesupport and guidance arrangements 2 and 3 for branch travel rotated outof the way. The levers are supported on shafts 12 for rotationthereabout and are driven together by an electric motor 14 throughappropriate linkages or gearing 13. For travel off onto the branchtrack, both doublearmed levers 11 are rotated 90 counterclockwise so asto cause the support element 2a to be exposed on the left and theguidance and support elements 2 and 3 exposed on the right. This willthen cause the vehicle to follow the guidance element 3 on the right offonto the curved portion of track.

Thus, an improved switching arrangement for a magnetic suspensionrailroad has been shown. Although specific embodiments have beenillustrated and described, it will be obvious to those skilled in theart that various modifications may be made without departing from thespiritof the invention which is intended to be limited solely by theappended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a magnetic suspension railroad wherein suspension is obtained byhorizontal secondary conductor elements on the roadbed cooperating withprimary conductor loops in a vehicle and wherein guidance is similarlyobtained through vertical secondary conductor members on the roadbedcooperating with primary conductor loops in the vehicle, with normalsections of track having a horizontal support element and verticalguidance element on each side, an improved switch for switching betweena main track and a branch track comprising: 7

a. a first support and guidance arrangement including a horizontalsecondary conductor element and a vertical secondary conducting elementextending in a first direction from the entry point of the switch;

b. a second similar arrangement on the other side of the entry point ofthe switch extending in another direction;

c. a first horizontal support element extending from the entry point ofthe switch parallel to said first guidance and support member;

d. a second horizontal support element extending parallel to said secondguidance and support arrangement crossing said first support element ata stationary frog;

e. means at the entry point of the switch coupling said switch with astraight section of track comprising:

f. first support and guidance coupling means for coupling said one sideof said straight section of track to said first guidance and supportarrangement on one side;

g. second support and guidance coupling means for coupling the otherside of said track to said second guidance and support arrangement onthe other side;

h. said first and second means having a separation greater than thespacing of the support and guidance elements on a normal track section;

i. a first horizontal support coupling element parallel to said firstcoupling means for coupling the other side of said normal section oftrack to said first horizontal support element; and

j. a second horizontal support coupling element parallel to said secondcoupling means for coupling the one side of said track to said track tosaid second horizontal support element.

2. In a magnetic suspension railroad wherein suspension is obtained byhorizontal secondary conductor elements on the roadbed cooperating withprimary conductor loops in a vehicle and wherein guidance is similarlyobtained through vertical secondary conductor members on the roadbedcooperating with primary conductor loops in the vehicle, with normalsections of track having a horizontal support element and verticalguidance element on each side, an improved switch for switching betweena main track and a branch track comprising:

a. a first support and guidance arrangement including a horizontalsecondary conductor element and a vertical secondary conducting elementextending in a first direction from the entry point of the switch;

b. a second similar arrangement on the other side of the entry point ofthe switch extending in another direction;

c. a first horizontal support element extending from the entry point ofthe switch parallel to said first guidance and support member;

d. a second horizontal support element extending parallel to said secondguidance and support arrangement crossing said first support element ata stationary frog;

e. means at the entry point of the switch coupling said switch with astraight section of track comprising;

second coupling guidance and support arrange ment and on a second arm asecond coupling support element, said lever rotatable about an axisparallel to the travel direction to align said second couplingarrangement with the other side of said normal section of track and saidsecond guidance and support arrangement or to align said second couplingelement with said one side of said normal section of track and saidfirst horizontal support element.

1. In a magnetic suspension railroad wherein suspension is obtained byhorizontal secondary conductor elements on the roadbed cooperating withprimary conductor loops in a vehicle and wherein guidance is similarlyobtained through vertical secondary conductor members on the roadbedcooperating with primary conductor loops in the vehicle, with normalsections of track having a horizontal support element and verticalguidance element on each side, an improved switch for switching betweena main track and a branch track comprising: a. a first support andguidance arrangement including a horizontal secondary conductor elementand a vertical secondary conducting element extending in a firstdirection from the entry point of the switch; b. a second similararrangement on the other side of the entry point of the switch extendingin another direction; c. a first horizontal support element extendingfrom the entry point of the switch parallel to said first guidance andsupport member; d. a second horizontal support element extendingparallel to said second guidance and support arrangement crossing saidfirst support element at a stationary frog; e. means at the entry pointof the switch coupling said switch with a straight section of trackcomprising: f. first support and guidance coupling means for couplingsaid one side of said straight section of track to said first guidanceand support arrAngement on one side; g. second support and guidancecoupling means for coupling the other side of said track to said secondguidance and support arrangement on the other side; h. said first andsecond means having a separation greater than the spacing of the supportand guidance elements on a normal track section; i. a first horizontalsupport coupling element parallel to said first coupling means forcoupling the other side of said normal section of track to said firsthorizontal support element; and j. a second horizontal support couplingelement parallel to said second coupling means for coupling the one sideof said track to said track to said second horizontal support element.2. In a magnetic suspension railroad wherein suspension is obtained byhorizontal secondary conductor elements on the roadbed cooperating withprimary conductor loops in a vehicle and wherein guidance is similarlyobtained through vertical secondary conductor members on the roadbedcooperating with primary conductor loops in the vehicle, with normalsections of track having a horizontal support element and verticalguidance element on each side, an improved switch for switching betweena main track and a branch track comprising: a. a first support andguidance arrangement including a horizontal secondary conductor elementand a vertical secondary conducting element extending in a firstdirection from the entry point of the switch; b. a second similararrangement on the other side of the entry point of the switch extendingin another direction; c. a first horizontal support element extendingfrom the entry point of the switch parallel to said first guidance andsupport member; d. a second horizontal support element extendingparallel to said second guidance and support arrangement crossing saidfirst support element at a stationary frog; e. means at the entry pointof the switch coupling said switch with a straight section of trackcomprising; f. a first double armed lever having on one arm a firstcoupling guidance and support arrangement and on a second arm a firstcoupling support element, said lever rotatable about an axis parallel tothe travel direction to align said first coupling arrangement with saidone side of said normal section of track and said first support andguidance arrangement or to align said first coupling support elementwith said one side of said normal section of track and said secondhorizontal support element; and g. a second double armed lever having onone arm a second coupling guidance and support arrangement and on asecond arm a second coupling support element, said lever rotatable aboutan axis parallel to the travel direction to align said second couplingarrangement with the other side of said normal section of track and saidsecond guidance and support arrangement or to align said second couplingelement with said one side of said normal section of track and saidfirst horizontal support element.